On The
Ground

Josiah Mortimer

What Did I Miss?

It’s good to be back. I was on parental leave for three months from December.

Thankfully, in that time, all I missed in politics were spy scandals, the American President suing the BBC, a u-turn on inheritance tax, the kidnapping of a head of state by a global superpower, ministers finally getting tough (or appearing to) on Elon Musk’s X, a wave of failed-Conservative defections to Reform UK, Greater Manchester’s Mayor Andy Burnham being blocked from running for Westminster, millions of Epstein Files landing, ex-prince Andrew being arrested, ‘dark lord’ Peter Mandelson being arrested, Morgan McSweeney and his acolytes finally being booted from No 10, an earth-shaking win for the Green Party (and humiliation for Reform UK’s Matt Goodwin), and a botched rebellion against the PM.

Still, it was completely worth it. I was watching my son learn to crawl, mouth his first words, and getting train drivers to honk their horns as we waved from the bridge. (And yes, sorting a lot of nappies, nap times, and messy lunches). The rain was relentless, but we got out everyday nonetheless. It was magical.

It’s a scandal that barely 3% of eligible couples use shared parental leave. There are real financial barriers to doing so. But it’s not purely about the money. Equal parenting needs a big publicity drive, and a culture shift to go with it. So I will keep shouting about it to anyone who’ll listen.